Anaesthesia and Critical Care Medicine

The Department of Anaesthesia and Critical Care Medicine teaches anaesthesia and critical care to Undergraduate medical students in their final year. 

We welcome both RCSI medical students and visiting medical students from outside institutions. During this time, as well as the students getting to practice some hands-on clinical skills, we offer simulation sessions and didactics to augment the intraoperative learning experience.

During their rotation, students are encouraged to be active participants in the patients’ anaesthesia care from start to finish – from the preoperative assessment of the patient prior to induction of anaesthesia, to performing procedures during and after induction, to transfer of the patient to recovery following their procedure.

Members of the department are also involved in the Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Society, which organises a number of events for undergraduate students including clinical skills and point of care echocardiography workshop, as well as a ‘Day in the Life of an Anaesthetist’ seminar.

The Department of Anaesthesia and Critical Care Medicine is involved in a number of multi-centre, randomised controlled trials in the area of critical care and anaesthesia.

The research we conduct at Beaumont Hospital in conjunction with other leading key institutions and trial groups provides us with knowledge and expertise to deliver high standards of evidence based care for critically ill patients.

Our aim is to improve the outcomes in terms of morbidity and mortality for patients who require critical care and our research team is currently conducting research in the areas of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), sepsis, neuro critical care, acute kidney injury (AKI), and post-cardiac arrest care in conjunction with many other research centres on a global scale.

At present, we are researching the potential of alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) for acute respiratory distress syndrome, as well as mesenchymal stromal cells and their secreted mediators, including anti-microbial specialised pro-resolving mediators (SPMs) for the treatment of sepsis.

In our lab, we are investigating these therapeutics in both in vitro and in vivo models, as well as in an ex-vivo lung perfusion system. In addition, the associated mechanisms of action of bacterial clearance and inflammatory resolution are being investigated with the aim of exploiting this knowledge for better patient care.

Professor of Anaesthesia and Critical Care

• Gerard Curley

Clinical Lecturer

• Criona Walshe

Clinical Research Nurse

• Michelle Smyth

Clinical Tutor

• Rebekah Fitzgerald

StAR Lecturer

• Natalie McEvoy

Postdoctoral Researcher

• Grace Hogan

Research Assistant

• Sasha Keil